outdoor workouts

Fall can be the perfect time to ramp up an exercise routine; the transitional season offers relief from the workout-sabotaging heat of Summer and the upcoming chilling weather of Winter. Get inspired with these ideas for your outdoor workouts.

Sign up for a boot camp: A weeks-long boot camp is the perfect plan to get total-body ready for any revealing Halloween outfits or your best holiday photos yet. If you don't want to sign up for a boot camp, you can use these bootcamp strategies during any outdoor exercise routine.

Buddy up: Time goes by fast when you work out with a friend, and making plans for an exercise meetup can bring structure to an outdoor routine. Luckily, there's no end to the kinds of outdoor workouts you can do with a friend; from cycling to rock climbing, here are a few workouts that are better to do with friends.

Small spaces: City living can make it hard to find a decent spot for a successful exercise routine. Up your cardio by running laps around your neighborhood park, or just find an empty playground for a unique circuit workout. Read more of our tips for using small outdoor spaces to exercise here.

No matter what you do, make sure you dress the part. Wear reflective gear if you're running on the streets at night, and wear layers if the temps have gotten chilly (here are some of our favorite lightweight layering tops for Fall).

Outdoor workouts are great, but if you don't live close to forests and fields, then it can be hard to find a good place for a trail run. If your neighborhood pack isn't exactly Central Park, then here are three easy ways to work out in nature, no matter how small.

Make a loop: Running around the park is a bit like running on a more scenic track, and you don't need a large park for an effective workout. Record the length of your neighborhood park's perimeter using a running phone app, and keep tally of how many loops you can do. It's an easy way to push yourself and track your progress as you get better at running.

Find the playground: Get killer arms, legs, and abs inside the park by finding the nearest playground or bench. Try this total-body playground workout for a circuit workout you can do while you're watching your kids!

Do some sprints: If there's nowhere to run trails, then try sprints in the park instead. Sprinting back and forth over a short distance (also called suicides) is a great way to build endurance and muscle; here's a suicide workout for the park to do the next time you're looking for a killer outdoor workout.

It's time for another Instagram photo challenge — and let's celebrate Summer in the process! Grab your iPhone or Android, snap a pic of an outdoor workout or a gorgeous scene from your next run or bike ride and then upload the pic to Instagram. Make sure to caption your photo with the hashtag #FitSugar; we'll grab our favorite shots from the upcoming week and share them with you here on the site. If you can't wait to see what pics readers are submitting, just search #FitSugar via the Instagram app.

Make sure to follow FitSugar on Instagram (username: FitSugar) for daily fitness inspiration and tips. Also, keep an eye out to see what outdoor workouts our own editors are enjoying this Summer!

Workouts often go one of two ways during the Summer months: either you're inspired to exercise more because it's beautiful outside, or a busy calendar or uncomfortable weather get in the way of a sweat session. If the latter sounds all too familiar, here's how to make sure workouts happen even when a hot, hectic Summer is throwing these problems your way.

It's too hot (or humid) outside: Check the weather every week and make a point to work out on cooler days; make sure to also pay attention to the humidity levels on each day. If you have a set exercise schedule, and you have a workout planned on a 95-degree day, use those times to do lower-intensity workouts, hit areas like the woods or beach, or cool off with one of these Summer water sports.

Pollen is making my allergies crazy: If you suffer from seasonal allergies, Summer blooms can make for a miserable outdoor workout. Keep an eye on daily pollen counts and if you know they're going to be high, exercise inside. If you just can't give up your outdoor workouts, find out what your triggers are and work out in areas where you can avoid them. The park may be unbearable, but the shore may cause no issues. If your symptoms are really bad, think about taking an antihistamine on days you're huffing and puffing outside, depending on what your doctor recommends.

My social calendar is packed: Whatever Summer plans you've got going on, find other times of the day to fit in your workouts. If you normally exercise after work but friends want to head to happy hour, vow to exercise in the morning. If you're headed on vacation, do these hotel exercises or schedule yoga classes on the beach, snorkeling day trips, bike tours, and other physical activities so you can in shape while on the road.

Summer music festival season is in full swing, and we can't wait to get in on all the action. While all these adventures are certainly a fun way to head to a big party, sometimes the whole thing can become a little too much. After all, if you're taking your vacation time to head to one of these events, don't you want to come back at least a little revived and rejuvenated?

The Wanderlust Festival set the precedent, but lots of other festivals have taken notice of the close-knit relationship that can exist between music and fitness. You're going to be burning some serious calories by shaking your thing as your favorite musicians perform, but if you want to get more fitness into your festival experience, here are some of our favorite festivals that offer options to complement the whole experience.

Hangout Music Festival

• When: May 18 — May 20, 2012
• Where: Gulf Shores, AL
• What They Offer: This year The Hangout is offering a series of mellow morning yoga classes taught by Kelly Morris. Live music from double bassist Garth Stevenson will accompany the Rock Your Body yoga experience that welcomes yogis and yoginis of all levels. Did I mention this whole thing is situated on a beautiful beach?

DelFest

• When: May 24 — May 27, 2012
• Where: Cumberland, MD
• What They Offer: DelFest is a festival that understands the connection between mind, body, and spirit. They hold activities coined movement playshops open to all festival attendees. Yoga and hula-hooping are the stars of the fitness show at DelFest.

Lightning in a Bottle

• When: May 24 — May 28, 2012
• Where: Silverado, CA
• What They Offer: Lightning in a Bottle created a special environment called the Lucent Temple of Consciousness dedicated to workshops, speakers, and lots of yoga classes. We also love that at LIB you can take a workshop and learn how to grow your own spirulina!

Keep reading for three more festivals that offer fun ways to stay fit.

As soon as the hint of Summer comes along, I'm all about taking my workout outside. I'll admit, however, that for me, forgoing the gym for the great outdoors usually means I'm out for a run. Luckily, there are many ways I can take more than my cardio outside. Here are some ideas for enjoying the fresh air while you tone up and stretch out.

• Take a bootcamp class: Ready to get whipped into shape before most people are even awake? Take advantage of mild Spring mornings by enrolling in an outdoor butt-busting boot camp in your city. You'll learn new moves and blaze through your workouts to see results by Summer.
• Create your own workout club: If you feel a little bit self-conscious or unmotivated to do a circuit workout outside when you're by yourself, then gather a few workout buddies to join. You'll have fun creating your own workouts (or try this circuit workout) and helping each other keep correct form, all while ditching the dark gym for a sunnier setting.
• Use the playground: Watching the kids at the playground? Take a few minutes to tone your entire body with these simple one-minute playground exercises.
• Find a bench: If there's no playground near you, don't worry — all you need is a sturdy bench for an insanely effective workout. Watch our bench workout video here.
• Relax with yoga: Stake out a quiet spot, tune into your Sun Salutations playlist on your iPod, and spend some time stretching and toning in the sun.

How do you exercise outside?